Tatsumi Port Island: Where it all Began
by theshippingpersona
Summary: Mina Arisato never thought about returning to Tatsumi Port Island. It brought back terrible memories, having that be the place where she lost everything at the age of six; that was reason one. No one in the foster system wanted her. So, when she was told she was moving back, she was more than a little shocked. (Minato is a girl)
1. First Night

She strolled down the streets with her hands in her coat pockets, her hearing blocked with her headphones. The music stopped a while ago, but she didn't really care at this point. She gave side glances at the houses she passed and caught more glimpses of coffins and bloodstains the more she walked. She suppressed a shudder as she readjusted her bag for the eighth time before she caught sight of the Iwatodai Dormitories ahead. She picked up the pace and was soon standing at the bottom of the stairs. She gulped and walked across a pool of red, thick blood to walk up the steps of the dorms. She didn't bother looking back when she entered.

Mina wiped her shoes on the carpet when she walked in, finding the dorm completely deserted and coated in a disturbing green haze. No bloodstains anywhere at least. The teen grunted and took off her headphones, her ears exposed to the cold air.

"You're late," a small, boyish voice said. Mina looked over and saw a little boy in a prison uniform leaning on the front desk with his head resting on his hands, staring at the girl with patient blue eyes. "I've been waiting a long time for you..."

Mina raised an eyebrow and the boy stood up straight before he snapped his small fingers, "If you want to proceed-" suddenly, the boy appeared in front of Mina-"please sign here,"

He gestured over to the desk. There was suddenly a leather book on the desk with a quill sitting in a jar of ink next to it.

"It's a contract," the book opened magically and confirmed itself to be a contract. Mina grunted and walked over to it as the boy continued to talk. "All it says is that you will take full responsibility for your actions. You know, the usual stuff..."

Mina hesitantly took the quill and hovered it over the line where she would sign her name. She stared at the paper, her eyes trying to piece together the blurry words on the page. The only thing she could make out was one sentence.

_"I chooseth this fate of thine own free will..."_

Mina sighed and placed the quill down and wrote her name. _Mina Arisato_. She placed the quill back into the jar of ink and closed the contract before picking it up and handing it to the boy in the prison uniform. The boy held the contract close to his chest and his eyes turned half-lidded, lacking emotion.

"No one can escape time, it delivers us all to the same end..." he looked up and stared right into Mina's eyes before he held the contract up to his right eye, "You can't plug your ears and cover your eyes..." with one swift movement, the contract has folded in his hand magically before disappearing. Mina felt her stomach drop when the boy held out his hand, the darkness slowly eating at him.

".._.and so it begins_..."

Mina stared helplessly as the boy melted into the darkness. Her hand twitched like it wanted to reach out. But, the boy was gone and she was alone again. She felt a shudder run through her as the boy's words played in her mind on repeat. The girl sighed, readjusting her bag strap. Maybe she'll see him again.

"Who's there!?"

Mina jumped at the sudden yell. She looked up and saw a figure in the shadows taking a battle stance. The voice seemed to belong to a girl. Mina tensed when she saw the girl reach down to what looked like a gun holster on her leg. Mina held her breath while the other girl began to hyperventilate.

"H-how can you be- but it's-...!" the mystery girl stammered. Mina opened her mouth to speak, but was cut off by the girl muttering, "Don't tell me..."

The girl took a deep breath and reached down for her gun.

"Takeba, wait!"

The girl with the gun turned around and Mina looked up to the stairs, the room suddenly illuminating with light and her headphones began to play her music loud and clear. The power was back on and everything looked... normal.

"The lights...!" the girl gasped.

Now that the lights were on, Mina was able to see. The girl with the gun wasn't much taller than Mina and she wore a school uniform with a pink sweater over it. She had pale skin and light brown shoulder-length hair.

"I didn't think you'd arrive so late."

Mina looked back up to the stairs and saw another girl approaching her. Mina raised her eyebrows and gulped. Maybe the term _woman_ would be more appropriate. The young woman walked with grace and confidence and wore a school uniform like it was a designer dress. Her crimson hair was styled so her bangs covered her right eye, and a large portion laid over her shoulder. She was stunning to say the least.

"I'm Mitsuru Kirijo," she announced, "I'm one of the students who live in the dorm."

Mina shook herself out of her thoughts and paused her music player before she slowly walked closer to the two strangers. Mina stuffed her hands in her pockets and stopped walking.

The girl armed turned to Kirijo, "...who's she?"

Kirijo smiled, "She's a transfer student. It was a last minute decision to assign her here,"

_"Don't I know it..."_ Mina bitterly thought. She had only received the letter about the transfer less than twenty-four hours ago . She barely had enough time to pack before she was sent to the station to leave. Considering the circumstances, it should not have been a shock Mina would arrive late.

"She'll eventually be moved to a room in a normal dorm," Kirijo said, making Mina raise her eyebrow. This _wasn't_ a normal dorm?

"Is it okay for her to be here...?" the other girl asked.

Mina shifted her gaze between the two females. They were aware she was in front of them right? That she could _hear_ them?

Kirijo chuckled, "I guess we'll see," She turned to Mina with a polite smile and gestured to the girl next to her, "This is Yukari Takeba. She'll be a junior this year too, just like you."

Takeba sucked in a breath before she turned to Mina with a grin, "Hi, I'm Yukari,"

"Why do you have a gun?"

Takeba let out a startled yelp and Mina froze with a bright red face. Mina mentally slapped herself and tugged at the insides of her pockets. She swallowed hard and glanced at Takeba's gun holster in an attempt to play off her blurt.

Takeba cleared her throat and regained her composure, "W-well, it's sorta like a hobby... Well, not a hobby, but-"

"You know how it is these days," Kirijo cut in, "It's for self-defense. It's not a real gun of course,"

Mina nodded, hoping that was the end of their conversation. She wanted to go to her room and not come out for the remainder of the year. She stayed silent for nearly all conversations, but the one time she decided to speak she embarrassed herself completely.

"It's getting late," Kirijo said, bringing Mina out of her thoughts, "You'll find your room on the third floor. You should have everything you need there already,"

"Oh, I'll show you the way!" Takeba chirped.

Mina nodded shortly and adjusted her bag. Takeba turned around and began walking to the stairs. Mina followed with her eyes firmly fixed on the ground.

* * *

"Here we are!" Takeba announced. She turned to Mina with a bright smile, "Pretty easy to remember right? Since it's at the end of the hall,"

Mina nodded, drumming her fingers along her bag strap. Mina took a step forward, ready to lock herself in the room, but was stopped by Takeba.

"Hey, can I ask you something?" Takeba asked. Mina sighed before she nodded. "On your way here from the station, was everything...okay?"

Mina suppressed a shiver. All those bloodstains, the coffins, and that unnatural green haze are all something Mina would prefer not to think about ever again. The walk from the station was like walking through Mina's nightmares. Of course, she couldn't tell Takeba that. Takeba would never believe her, she would think Mina was insane. Not that Mina could blame her.

So, Mina decided to keep quiet and only reply with a simple, "...yes."

Takeba raised her eyebrows, obviously skeptical. But, thankfully, she didn't press and gave a nod, "Well, I better get going. And, I know you probably have other questions, but save them for later 'kay?"

Mina nodded.

Takeba grinned, "Well, goodnight!"

And with that, the girl turned on her heels and walked down the hall, leaving Mina alone. Mina scrunched her eyebrows together before shrugging and opening the door to her temporary room. She fumbled around for the light switch before she walked in and closed the door. Mina looked around the spacious room with a look of awe.

The room was a traditional dorm room, except it was quite larger than any other dorm Mina has seen. There was a sink and mirror next to the door by two large windows, and a desk near the third window. The windows had faded blue curtains on them, which were closed. The bed was in the back of the room and was centered with two small night stands on each side; and there was a leather chair that sat in the far corner next to it. In the other corner, there was a small TV stand with an old TV on top. Mina walked further in and tossed her bag onto the bed, causing a thump to fill the eerie silence.

Mina grabbed her headphones and unwrapped them from her neck before she set them on the desk. She unzipped her jacket and placed it on the bed before she kicked off her shoes, setting them by the desk. She walked over to her bag and unzipped it to reveal multiple piles of clothes. She grabbed a t-shirt and pajama bottoms from one pile and set them on the bed before she separated each piece of clothing in her luggage. Afterwards, she took out her toothbrush and toothpaste for later. She grabbed her black t-shirt and set it away from the rest before she slipped out of her blue long sleeve.

Topless, Mina quickly grabbed the t-shirt and pulled it over her head and smoothed it out. She then moved to her baggy leggings—everything was baggy on her it seemed. She slipped out of those easily and grabbed her long pajama bottoms and slid into those before grabbing her old clothes to bundle them up and set them aside. She'll deal with those later.

She zipped her bag closed and set it under her bed. She grabbed her jacket and set it on the chair near the desk. Growing more tired by the minute, Mina walked over to the sink and quickly brushed her teeth. She left her toothbrush and paste by the sink and turned off the lights before climbing into her bed. She sighed and buried her head in her pillow and covered herself before she eventually fell asleep.


	2. Gekkoukan Highschool

Mina stared at the mirror with a disappointed gaze. The uniform was the wrong size. The sleeves went to her fingers and the skirt was almost to her knees. Mina held out her arms and cringed at how low the sleeves hung. The main body of the uniform looked like fabric shaped to look like a large box. Mina groaned and set her arms down. This wasn't the first time she received the wrong uniform size; she's always received something too big growing up. But, she had hoped it would be different this year.

Upon seeing the uniform for the first time, she had hoped it wasn't as big as it looked. She had hoped it was only slightly baggy and that it would look decent. But, no. Instead, the uniform was two sizes too big. The neck was almost touching her shoulders, the hem reached below her waist, and the skirt almost touched her knees (despite the length, Mina still wore her black tights). She looked like a child in a high school uniform.

Mina sighed deeply before she grabbed her comb and started to comb her damp hair. It was always a hassle combing through her hair since it was always tangled from sleeping. And, because of how long it was, it took more time to comb through it. After her hair was tangle free, she grabbed her left bangs and pinned them back with thin, shiny clips. Normally, she wouldn't bother, but, since her uniform looked awful on her, she hoped the clips would help.

Mina spared one last glance at her uniform before she started brushing her teeth. While doing this, she grabbed her headphones and music player to wrap around her neck. They had enough battery to last her a few hours. She swished around her toothpaste as she grabbed her phone, which she forgot to charge last night. It still had some battery left at least.

Mina walked over to the sink to spit out her toothpaste and finished brushing her teeth. She wiped her mouth dry just as a knock came to her door.

"Hey, it's Yukari!"

Mina grunted and walked over to open the door. She saw Takeba wearing the exact same outfit from yesterday, only her gun holster was missing. Probably for the best.

Takeba smiled, "Good morning! Did you sleep okay?" Mina nodded, offering a small grin. Takeba's smile widened, "Great! Mitsuru-senpai asked me to take you to school. It's getting late so…" Yukari's eyes slowly trailed to Mina's uniform. Her face twisted, "...you ready to go?"

Mina sighed and slowly nodded.

Yukari raised her eyebrows."Uh, okay, let's get going."

* * *

The train was extra crowded today, according to Takeba. Mina was pressed up against the windows while Takeba was stuck between a group of teens and a group of adults. Mina almost felt bad for her.

"Oh, there it is!" Takeba blurted, pointing behind Mina. The girl looked behind her and saw that the train was now up against a green fence, but behind it was the island. There was a large building, presumed to be the school. Mina stared in awe, she doesn't remember the school being here before. Of course, she was only six the last time she was here.

"You ready?" Takeba cooed, smiling. Mina shrugged, a small smile tugging at her lips. She looked back to the window.

She was _so_ ready.

* * *

Mina was so _not_ ready.

Everyone seemed to know each other, but, since she was obviously new, everyone made a point to stare at her wherever she walked. Mina felt her heart skip several beats as her and Takeba walked deeper into the crowds. Speaking of Takeba, everyone knew her and greeted her with either a good morning or a kind hello. In response, Takeba just smiled and cheerfully repeated the greeting. While Mina, on the other hand, only received gawks of others. She nervously itched at the fabric of the uniform or lightly drummed her fingers along the buttons of her music player. She felt like the whole world was just staring into her soul. She couldn't handle all this attention!

Fortunately, her and Takeba arrived at the gates of Gekkoukan.

Takeba turned to face Mina with a bright smile on her face, "Well, we're here! Welcome to Gekkoukan Highschool, hope you like it!"

Mina gulped as she stared at the building. On the train, she was more than ready to attend classes and experience what Gekkoukan had to offer. Now, she wished she could just hide until the year was over. But, she obviously couldn't.

Mina took a deep breath before she nodded to Takeba, who turned around to lead Mina inside.

The school was way too spacious, even for a highschool. Mina couldn't help but shudder as soon as she stepped in. The lockers were in front of the entrance, and they were completely plagued with students. Mina followed Takeba until she stopped at the end of the locker aisle.

Takeba turned with a grin, "You're okay from here right?"

Mina heard alarm bells ringing in her head. She was most certainly _not_ okay.

But, instead of speaking up, Mina gave a short nod. She hoped she was going to be okay.

"You should probably go see your homeroom teacher first," Takeba advised. She looked over to the halls, "The Faculty Office is right over there to the left,"

Mina bobbed her head, Takeba seeming satisfied. "Okay then, that concludes the tour. Any questions before I go?"

"No…"

Takeba gave a short nod and turned to leave. She stopped. She turned back and had a nervous look on her face. "Hey...about last night, don't tell anyone what you saw, okay?"

Mina shrugged, "Okay,"

Takeba smiled, "Thanks. Okay, well, see ya!"

With that, Takeba pivoted and walked away. Mina hummed and looked around. There was a group of students huddled around what seemed like a bulletin board. Maybe the class roster was there. Mina walked over to the group and pushed past a few students to find the class roster. She searched the board for her name, only to find nothing. She searched again, her foot tapping impatiently. Just as she was about to give up, she found a small sticky note half buried by the roster.

**Mina Arisato, Class F**

_"Couldn't have set my name where I could see it?"_ Mina sighed and turned around to walk down to the hallway where Takeba said the Faculty Office would be.

While Mina walked down the halls, she overheard a conversation between what looked like a faculty member and a student. She stopped to listen. The faculty member seemed to be lecturing the student who was a boy with a blonde bowl cut. He was holding a fan.

"Listen, if you're a real man, you should have the soul of a samurai! Here at this school, we teach students to become samurai, so they can succeed in society and-"

"Woah! But zis is great! I wish to also become ze samurai!"

Mina raised her eyebrows. The boy had a thick foreign accent. It sounded French.

"Yes! That's it, that's it! That's the spirit! You might not be from here, but we're on the same page!"

Mina shrugged, excusing herself from the conversation. She should go to the Faculty Office. She looked up at the signs atop of the doors until she found the one labeled Faculty Office. Mina walked in and immediately was greeted by a teacher.

"Oh, are you the new student?" the teacher asked. She wore a light pink suit and her hair was light brown and just above her shoulders. She looked very similar to Takeba.

Mina nodded. The teacher mimicked, looking at the clipboard she was holding.

"Okay... Mina Arisato, 11th grade correct?" Mina bobbed her head, "Wow, you've lived in a lot of different places..." Mina felt her stomach churn. She had a bad feeling. "Let's see...in 1999, that was what, ten years ago? Your family-"

She gasped, Mina felt her whole body go numb and her stomach sank with her heart. Her cold hands balled into fists as the teacher quickly started apologizing.

"I'm so sorry, I've been so busy I hadn't had any time to read this beforehand-"

"'s fine..." Mina rasped out. She uncurled her fists and held her breath. It wasn't the first time a faculty member brought up her family. She should be used to it by now.

The teacher sighed, "...I'm Ms. Toriumi. I teach Composition, welcome to our school,"

"...pleasure."

"Oh, have you seen the classroom assignments? You're in 2-F! That's my class," Ms. Toriumi grinned, "But first, we'll need to go to the auditorium. The Welcoming Ceremony will be starting soon. Please, follow me,"

Ms. Toriumi walked past Mina and out of the Faculty Office, Mina slowly trailing behind.

* * *

"As you begin the new school year," the principal drawled out, "I'd like each of you to remember the proverb,_ 'If it's a job worth doing, then it's a job worth doing well.'_ When it's applied to student life, this means..."

Mina sighed, sinking in her seat. She considered putting on her headphones and listening to music. But, she decided against it, hoping she would hear something important. So, she just sat there in her seat as the principal went on with his drawled out speech.

"_Psst_...hey," Mina jumped in her seat as someone from behind tapped her shoulder. "You came to school with Yukari this morning, right? I saw you two walking together. Hey, I have a question. Does Yukari have a boyfriend?"

Mina's face twisted in confusion. How the hell would she know? She had just met her last night.

Mina rolled her eyes and turned her head to speak, "I don't know."

"Oh right...sorry," the boy quieted down and Mina sank further in her seat. "Wait, how well do you know her-"

"I hear talking," Mina lazily looked over and saw a teacher nearby glowering at every student near Mina. "I believe it's someone from Ms. Toriumi's class…"

"Shh! Quiet, you're going to get me in trouble!" Ms. Toriumi hissed. As soon as she said that, many students began to talk.

Mina sighed and pulled out her headphones. The speech was not worth it.

* * *

It wasn't long until the principal finally finished his speech and everyone was dismissed to their classrooms. Mina followed Ms. Toriumi to 2-F and was introduced to the class.

"This is Mina Arisato. She will be joining us for the year, so I want you all to behave and treat her with respect," Ms. Toriumi said sternly. Mina looked around the room and found Takeba giving her a bright smile and a wave. Mina grinned and gave a small wave back. Maybe she won't be alone in all of this.

"Now then, why don't you introduce yourself?" Ms. Toriumi suggested. Mina gave a short nod and looked at the class.

She sucked in a breath before she bowed, "My name is Mina Arisato."

She stood up straight and the class was now whispering amongst themselves.

"What's up with her uniform?"

"She's so small..."

"Why is her eye covered?"

Ms. Toriumi made a noise of disapproval, "All right, that's enough now!" she looked to Mina, who was glowering at the class. "Your seat is over there,"

Ms. Toriumi pointed to an empty seat next to a boy sleeping. Mina took a deep breath and walked over, her music player and headphones bouncing. She slid in her seat and Ms. Toriumi began to teach.

* * *

It was the end of the school day and everyone had left, except a few students. Mina being one of them. She stood up from her seat and grabbed her headphones, about to put them on when a boy walked up to her with a bright smile.

"S'up, dude!" he greeted. The boy wore a navy blue baseball cap and had a patch of facial hair on his chin. Not exactly a goatee, but close enough. "How's it goin'?"

Mina shrugged, ignoring her uniform sliding.

"Sweet, I'm Junpei Iori! Nice to meet ya!" he placed his hands on his hips, "I transferred here in 8th grade. I know how tough it is bein' the new kid,"

Mina shrugged again. This wasn't her first time being new to a school. She moved around a lot, being tossed around in foster homes. She's even lived in America before. So, nothing was really new except for the gawking. She was usually ignored after the first few hours.

"So I just wanted to check up on ya, make sure you're not freaking out on your first day!" Iori chuckled, "See what a nice guy I am?"

Mina raised an eyebrow. This guy _definitely_ wanted something. But, before he could say another word, Takeba hurried over and interrupted.

"Hey, it's Yuka-tan!" Iori cheered, making Takeba roll her eyes. "I didn't think we'd be in the same class again,"

Yukari scoffed, "At it again, huh? I swear, you'll talk to anyone if they'll listen. She hasn't even been here that long and you're already hitting on her,"

Mina's eyebrows raised and her cheeks flushed a deep red. Was that really what Iori was doing? Mina fumbled with her music player while Iori started sputtering out excuses.

"I swear, I was just being friendly!" Iori deended, his face as red as a tomato. "I swear!"

Takeba sighed, "If you say so," Takeba looked to Mina with another one of her smiles. "Anyways, looks like we're in the same homeroom,"

Mina nodded, her cheeks still flushed. Takeba didn't comment and continued to talk, "At least now you'll have someone to talk to. Still, I'm a little surprised,"

"Um, _hellooo_? Are you forgetting that I'm in this class too?" Iori asked, impatient for attention. "By the way, you two know each other? I heard you two came to school together this morning. Couple of cuties like you walking side by side... Class is buzzing about you guys!"

Mina grumbled, feeling like she was running a fever. She wanted to run back to the dorms and lock herself in her room.

"Ugh, could you stop that? I hate dealing with rumors like that..." Takeba gave a weary glance at Mina, "I mean, I'm used to it, but she's not! She just got here, don't you feel bad spreading rumors like that?"

"Wha- but I didn't-"

"Ugh, whatever. I have to go deal with some archery team stuff. Don't try anything funny you got that, Junpei?" Takeba turned hot on her heels and left the classroom.

"What is she, your nanny?" Iori scoffed. He suddenly cleared his throat and turned to Mina, "Oh, just to clear things up, I seriously did not come over here to hit on you or anything."

Mina blinked before she cleared her throat, her heat situation calming down. She gave a short nod, "It's fine."

Iori sighed in relief, "Okay. So, if you ever have a problem, you can tell your ol' pal Junpei!" He gave a cheeky anime-like smile as he pointed his thumb at himself.

Mina snorted, "Yeah, okay,"

Iori laughed, "Sweetness! My ears are always open!"

* * *

Somehow, Iori managed to persuade Mina into letting him walk her to the dorm. Iori didn't seem like a bad guy. Just someone who has an issue keeping his mouth shut. So, Mina decided she might as well let him walk her back to the dorms. Maybe this was his way of apologizing for giving Mina a heat stroke earlier.

"Woah, look at the jocks!" Iori chuckled. Mina looked up and saw a crowd of students in track uniforms running past them. "Hey, did anyone tell you about the school clubs yet?"

Mina shook her head. Iori smiled, "Girls can join too so, if ya want, you can join a club! But, you'd be joining as a new member, so you won't be able to join after a while…"

Mina nodded her head. School clubs were never Mina's thing. She always just kept to herself and studied for classes until she transferred to another school. The one and only time she ever joined a club, it was _not_ pretty. It caused her to transfer both schools and foster homes. Since then, Mina never bothered with school clubs.

The two made small talk on the way to the dorms. Mina didn't do much of the talking, only nodding or shaking her head. Iori didn't seem to mind much. Or maybe he just didn't notice. However, his company was...actually nice. Iori seemed like a nice enough guy and didn't pry too much into Mina's personal life. That was a wonderful treat.

The two eventually made it to the dorms within the hour. The two walked up the steps until they were outside the doors. Iori stopped and faced Mina with a smile, "Okay then! Well, I'll see ya at school!"

Junpei waved goodbye as he walked backwards towards the stairs. Mina gave a small smile and a nod before she entered the building. The walk wasn't a bad decision.

"Welcome back,"

Mina jumped and turned to see Kirijo sitting on the large sofa with a book. Mina grunted in reply and adjusted her bag filled with textbooks she brought from school. Ms. Toriumi gave her a bag to hold all of her textbooks she'll need for the year. She brought them back for studying purposes. As Mina walked, she noticed a sign-in sheet on the desk.

"Oh, right. Arisato, you'll need to sign in after you come back to the dorms," Kirijo stated, not looking up from her book.

Mina gave a small nod in response before she grabbed the pen and wrote her name on an empty line. Afterwards, Mina walked up the stairs and went to her room.

She closed the door behind her when she entered her room and turned on the light. She walked over to her desk and set the bag on top. Mina quickly kicked off her shoes and set them by the legs of the desk. Mina plopped in her chair and unzipped her bag, taking out all of her textbooks and notebooks and setting the stack on the edge of the desk before tossing the empty bag on the bed.

She sighed and neatly placed the textbooks beside each other, the order of what class came first. The girl then grabbed her pen that was wedged in one of her notebooks and opened up to a blank page, writing Notes on the top. Mina put on her headphones, blasting music before she opened up one of the textbooks.

She had a long day of studying...

* * *

It was minutes before midnight when Mina finally went to bed, having finished all of her studying and already in her pajamas with brushed teeth. She climbed into bed, turning on her side and burying her head in the sheets. She sighed deeply, relaxing just enough for her to fall asleep.


	3. Velvet Room

"Oh! Did you hear the rumor?"

Mina slowed down as she heard two girls chatting loudly. Loud enough that the conversation overlapped Mina's music. She turned down the volume so she could hear

"Oh, the one about the um...bathroom?"

Mina's face scrunched up in confusion. What's so interesting about a bathroom?

"N-no! Not that one!" the other girl bursted out, "I mean the story about the first-year student!"

Mina raised an eyebrow, taking off one side of her headphones.

"Not only did she stop coming to school, but she does nothing but sit and stare at walls all day," the gossiping girl shuddered, "If her mom tries to talk to her, all the girl does is mutter to herself saying _'It's coming, it's coming_!'"

Mina scrunched her eyebrows together. What in God's name were they talking about? Mina slowly and wearily put her headphones back on, still listening to the conversation.

"Huh. How about that," the girl's friend said in a flat tone.

The gossiping girl made a disappointed noise, "You don't believe me?"

Before any of them could say anything, the first bell rang, making everyone outside hurry inside. Mina hummed to herself as she turned up the volume on her music player.

* * *

Mina patiently sat in her seat with her textbook and notebook open. She twirled her pen around her fingers as Ms. Toriumi walked up to the podium, a look of boredom on her face.

"For those of you who haven't, open up your textbooks, we'll be taking a look at the first novel by Zenzou Kasai," Ms. Toriumi made a noise of disgust. "Why him? I'd much rather teach Utsubo Kubota,"

Mina wrote down Utsubo Kubota under Zenzou Kasai in her notebook while Ms. Toriumi ranted about Utsubo Kubota.

"...I wonder why it's not in the textbook. Oh well, I'll just bring Kubota's book next time," Ms. Toriumi sighed. Before she continued with the lesson, she looked over towards the right of the classroom and scoffed, "Junpei! Were you listening?"

Mina turned and saw Iori perk up with panic written on his face. "H-huh?! Uh, y-yeah!"

"_Hmph_, if so, who did I say was my favorite author?" Ms. Toriumi narrowed her eyes as Junpei stumbled over his words.

"U-um... well..." Iori suddenly looked at Mina with desperation in his eyes. Mina took a moment before sighing. She gave a short nod and mouthed the answer, hoping Iori knew how to read lips.

"Uts...ubo K-Kabo...ta?" Iori muttered, his voice wavering.

Ms. Toriumi hummed, pleased. "That's right. So you were listening to me after all!"

"Hehe... Well, you know me, I like to pay attention..." Iori mumbled. As soon as Ms. Toriumi was distracted, he looked to Mina with a bright smile. "Thanks, Mina. You totally saved my bacon!"

Mina rolled her eyes, a smile tugging at her lips. Mina sat up straight as she heard nearby classmates whisper.

"Didja see that...? Mina gave him the answer, she must pay attention in class...!"

Mina sighed. Maybe she shouldn't have helped.

* * *

It was the end of classes and, having nothing to do, Mina decided to just go back to the dorms and study. Walking through the lively strip mall with her headphones blasting music, Mina was reading a few notes she took for Ms. Toriumi's class. It wasn't really anything important, but it was best to go over the notes and memorize them just in case.

Mina always had a good memory, which made it very easy to pass exams. Though, some material was hard for Mina to memorize. When she was desperate enough, Mina would make up a song for whatever she was trying to memorize. Once, in elementary school, she made up a small history song when her class was learning about a historical figure. Mina cringed. The song was so old and cheesy, the thought of it was just so _embarrassing_.

Mina shook her head, getting rid of the thought and brought her focus back on her notes as she walked through the lively strip mall.

* * *

Mina finally made it back to the dorms and was about to retreat to her room, when she was stopped by Takeba.

"Oh, she's back!"

Mina looked over, taking off her headphones, and saw Yukari sitting on the sofa with another person, who was sitting in the chair. Their back was facing Mina so she couldn't see their face.

"Ah, so this is our new guest," said a manly voice as the person stood from their seat. The mysterious person was a tall man in a tan suit. He walked over to Mina with Takeba following him. "My name is Shuji Ikutsuki. I am the Chairman of the Board for your school,"

Mina nodded, her eyes analyzing the man in front of her. Ikutsuki had wavy light brown hair that went past his shoulders. He had glasses and a small stubble.

Ikutsuki suddenly chuckled, "Ikutsuki...hard to say isn't it? That's why I don't like introducing myself. Even I get tongue-tied sometimes," Mina shrugged and Ikutsuki grinned, "Please, have a seat,"

Ikutsuki retreated to his previous seat, as did Takeba but she made room for Mina even though it was unnecessary. Mina had her bag in her lap and her headphones dangled around her neck.

"I apologize for the confusion regarding your accommodations," Ikutsuki began, "However, it may take a little while longer before you receive the proper room assignment. Now then, are there any questions you'd like to ask?"

Mina shook her head. She wanted to get this over with as quickly as possible so she could study.

"Well then, I hope you have a successful school year," Ikutsuki gave a warm smile, "Now then, if you'll excuse me," Ikutsuki stood and walked away from the chair, only to stop in front of Mina, "You must be tired from all the excitement, you should go to bed early. As they say, _'the early bird catches the bookworm_!'"

Mina opened her mouth to protest, only to have Ikutsuki already out of her sight. Mina sighed. She really needed to study. It wasn't like Ikutsuki would know she wasn't sleeping, right?

Takeba groaned, "You'll have to get used to his lame jokes..." she stood from her seat, "Well, I'm going to bed early. You should too. Goodnight!"

Takeba turned and walked towards the stairs, her hands behind her back. Mina raised an eyebrow. Why did everyone want her to go to bed early? She had to study.

Mina sighed, _"Guess it wouldn't hurt to sleep a little earlier..."_

She stood from her seat and was about to head straight for the stairs, only to turn and go to the sign-in sheet. She quickly signed in and then rushed upstairs and into her room. She didn't know what would have happened if she didn't, and she wasn't about to find out.

She walked into her room and shut the door behind her. She turned on the lights and kicked off her shoes, setting them by the desk like she did the other two nights she spent in the dorm. She set her bag of books on the desk along with her headphones and grabbed her bag with her clothes, pulling out a loose top and shorts. It was the only thing she had at this point. She should probably wash her clothes soon.

Mina slipped out of her uniform and put on her bed clothes before walking over to the sink to brush her teeth. She took out her pins in her hair as she brushed her front teeth. She placed the pins by the faucet and spit out the paste before slurping up water. She swished the water around in her mouth and spit that out before drying her mouth with a towel.

All done and ready for bed, Mina quickly turned off the lights and buried herself in the blankets, slowly falling asleep.

* * *

_Mina felt lightheaded as she opened her eyes. She felt herself moving. Moving upwards, but she was perfectly still at the same time. Mina lifted her head and her groggy eyes sharpened. She looked around her. She was in an...elevator? A very large and spacious elevator. Mina looked at herself, she was sitting in a chair in her school uniform. She looked in front of her, there was a round table with a blue tablecloth over it. Behind that was a blue loveseat, it looked antique. Sitting on it was a man in a black suit, he had an abnormally large nose and had white hair on the sides of his head._

_The man with the long nose chuckled, "Welcome to the Velvet Room... My name is Igor, I am delighted to make your acquaintance," Mina scrunched up her eyebrows. "This place exists between dream and reality, mind and matter. It is a place where only those who are bound by a contract may enter..."_

_Mina straightened. That contract she signed!_

_"Henceforth, you shall be welcomed here in the Velvet Room," Igor waved a hand, "You are destined to hone your unique ability, and you will require my help to do so. I only ask one thing in return: that you abide by the contract, and assume responsibility for the choices you make,"_

_Igor stared at Mina expectantly. The girl felt numb and weak as she nodded, muttering, "I understand..."_

_Igor grinned, his teeth shining in the light, "Hold on to this..."_

_The man handed a strange key to Mina. She held it close and set it in her lap. Igor hummed, "There is still one more resident in this room, but unfortunately he could not be present for your arrival. I'll make sure you two meet, but maybe at a later date. Until then, farewell..."_

_Mina felt her body grow heavy and her vision blurred. Everything went black._

* * *

Mina gasped awake, jolting upward in her bed. She held her aching chest and felt her heart beat rapidly as she tried to steady her breathing. She looked outside. The sun was beginning to rise. Mina kicked off the blankets and swung her shaky legs over the side of the bed. She set her elbows firmly on her knees trying to keep them grounded and her head rested on her freezing hands. She held her breath and released it seconds later. She repeated this until she was fully calm and not seeing stars.

"The Velvet Room..." Mina whispered. She sighed deeply, standing up slowly. "I better get dressed..."

* * *

Fully dressed, Mina was combing her hair and brushing her teeth. Her hair was extra tangled this morning, so Mina had to spend more time on it than usual. She decided against putting pins in, she really had no reason to put them in aside from using them as a distraction from her uniform. Setting down the comb, Mina spit out her toothpaste and swashed around some water before drying her mouth.

Mina walked away from the mirror and grabbed her headphones and put them on, blasting her music. She grabbed her bag of books and walked out of her room. She walked down the halls and down the flights of stairs until she was finally out of the dorms.

* * *

"Hey, Mina!" Mina looked up and saw Iori walking next to her. If Mina hadn't stopped her music, she wouldn't have even noticed him there. Mina took off her headphones as Iori brightened, "Today's the day! The skies are blue, the sun is shining we're young! What more could we ask for?!"

Mina raised an eyebrow, "You're full of energy..."

Iori chuckled, "Of course! Dude, listen to this-" his face suddenly fell, "Oh wait, I'm not supposed to say anything. Oops, sorry dude..." Iori chuckled as he scratched the nape of his neck.

Mina blinked before she shrugged, putting her headphones back on as the first bell rang. Mina and Iori walked to the school and class together in silence. Mina sat in her respected seat as did Iori. She took out her textbooks and her notebook as the teacher cleared his throat

"I'm Mr. Ekoda. I'll be teaching you Classic Literature; I'll be teaching you about Japan for a whole year,"

Mr. Ekoda wore a suit and tie and his dark hair was swept neatly to the side in a professional manner.

"Some people think Classic Lit isn't relevant to everyday life, but, oh, how they're wrong!" Mr. Ekoda said, waving his arms for emphasis, "The students, the teachers- wrong, wrong, wrong, wrong! Nobody really understands Classic Lit..."

Mina sighed deeply, crossing her arms and leaning back in her seat while Mr. Ekoda raged on and on about Classic Lit.

"Hey, is anyone listening to me?" Mr. Ekoda asks, "Wake up children! Now, open your textbooks," Mina opened her textbook on her desk, waiting for instructions. "The first on our syllabus is _'Ise Monogatari'_, the origin of Japanese literature. It's a rather interesting story, some of you youngsters may call it, _'da bomb_,'"

Mina cringed. Mr. Ekoda suddenly went quiet. He sighed, "I can tell some of you are _'zoning out_'..."

With much agony, Mina managed to listen to the lecture Mr. Ekoda was giving. Mina wrote down a few notes here and there about Ise Monogatari, but mostly sat in her seat watching the teacher make a fool out of himself using teen slang. Mina honestly considered putting on her headphones and doing the assignment by herself.

It was finally the end of classes, and Iori had offered to walk with her again. Mina agreed, only because Iori wanted to. Mina and Iori walked through the strip mall, Iori doing most of the talking while Mina gave, yet again, only one word responses. Iori didn't seem to mind.

Despite the shortness of the walk, it was nice.

* * *

She did the same routine as before, door shut, lights on, shoes off, textbooks and notebooks out, and music blasting.

She hummed along with the singer and her head swayed from side to side in a casual rhythm as she wrote down notes for Mr. Ekoda. In the coming hours of studying the same subject, Mina grew tired. She began to yawn and found herself rubbing her dry eyes. Mina's eyes drooped as she lazily wrote down a quote in her notebook. Normally, she would drop the study session and go straight to bed. But, she wanted to finish up her notes on Ise Monogatari, despite it being only a few minutes until midnight.

She yawned and her head was now resting on the palm of her hand. Growing more and more tired by the second, Mina finally gave up and let her eyes close. She didn't feel her head hitting the notebook, nor did she notice her music player stop.

She was already asleep.


	4. Orpheus

Mina awoke to a loud crash. She jolted up in her seat with a yelp. She had her headphones on still, except they weren't playing any music. She rubbed her eyes and took off her headphones and set them on the desk with her study supplies. She looked around her. Everything was coated in green.

Just like that night.

Mina shook her head and stood up just as another loud crash came. Mina jumped up from her seat and quickly slipped on her shoes. While doing this, a knock came to her door.

"Hey! Wake up!"

"Takeba?" Mina called out, rushing over to the door to open it. Takeba stood there, wide-eyed and breathing heavily. "What's going o-"

"I don't have time to explain!" Takeba gasped, "We have to get out of here now!"

Mina opened her mouth to speak, but was interrupted by another cash. The whole dorm shook and Mina nearly lost her balance.

Takeba grumbled, "Quickly! We need to leave!"

Takeba grabbed Mina's wrist and began to run down the halls. Mina let herself be dragged along to the stairs, until a bright yellow light caught her attention. Mina slipped her hand out of Takeba's hold and stopped in front of the large window.

"Mina! What the hell are you-"

"The moon..." Mina mumbled, her eyes twinkling.

The moon was a yellow-green color, similar to a firefly. It was surrounded by dark green clouds, making it glow brighter in all its glory. It was so...unique. Pretty, even. Mina found herself drawn to it. She just wanted to stare at it for a while.

Takeba, however, did not.

"Mina, we don't have time for this! Our lives are in danger! Do you want to die?!" she screamed.

Mina looked away from the window and looked to Takeba with a look of pity. "Is dying that scary to you?"

"What, you _want_ to die?!"

Mina stayed silent. Mina never cared if she died. Not since that night of the accident ten years ago. The accident involving her family's life. Mina had no close family, no friends, no relationships. She had no purpose for living.

Mina had resented death, yes, but she didn't care if she ended up being its next target, its next stage of its cycle.

"...I don't really care," Mina finally muttered, her voice calm and steady. Mina tilted her head to Takeba, who was staring at the other with wide and horrified eyes.

Takeba knitted her eyebrows together, her mouth agape, "...how could you say that-"

Another crash came, interrupting the two. The crash shook the building more violently than the last time. The moon's glow was suddenly shielded. Mina and Takeba looked up at the window and saw a large blue mask pressed against the glass. There was a black body behind it, covering almost the entire window. Mina stared at it with widened eyes. The creature stared at Mina with interest. Its hand suddenly pressed against the glass, the glass quickly breaking under the pressure.

"GET DOWN!"

Takeba tackled Mina to the ground, shielding her as glass shattered. The girl on top hissed in pain as Mina felt something drip onto her fingertips. Mina brought her finger up to look at it. There was a drop of blood running down her finger. Takeba climbed off of Mina, and Mina was able to see a cut on Takeba's leg. It was bleeding fast.

Takeba groaned as she jumped up, taking Mina's hand. She lifted the other up to her feet, "C'mon! Up to the roof!"

Takeba dragged Mina up the stairs, rambling to herself. "I can't die here. I don't want to die! Not here!" Mina heard a sob hitch in the other's throat, "I haven't learned anything yet!"

Mina let herself get dragged up to the roof. Her wrist was hurting from Takeba's grip, but she didn't comment. The two made it on the roof and Mina's wrist was released and her feet were finally in her control again. Takeba stared at the sky, breathing heavily.

It took a moment for her to turn to Mina, "Are you oka-"

Another crash came, it made both of them stumble. Mina flailed around, nearly falling, until she finally regained her balance. Takeba regained her balance quickly and took a battle stance in front of Mina.

Suddenly, a large, black gooey hand took hold of the roof's ledge while another held up the same blue mask from the window.

"That thing…" Takeba gasped, "We call them shadows!"

Multiple arms and hands appeared from the shadow and it was soon crawling on the roof towards the two girls. It stopped midway and its arms pulled out long silver swords from its body before charging at full speed.

Takeba unlocked her gun holster on her leg and took out her gun, "Run, Mina!"

Mina took a step back, only to freeze in her tracks. She couldn't move her body. Her hands twitched and her chest rose with every breath, but every other body part laid still.

Takeba held her gun in her shaky hands for a moment before pointing it in between her eyes. She was hyperventilating as she tried to squeeze the trigger. Mina watched helplessly as the creature made its way closer and closer. Takeba sucked in a breath, ready to pull the trigger.

But she was too late.

Takeba cried out in pain as she was hit by the shadow's hand, flying to the other side of the roof. Takeba rolled and rolled until she landed onto her side, completely limp.

Shaking, Mina watched the shadow slowly crawl towards Takeba's limp body. Mina brought her gaze down. Takeba's gun was on the ground in front of her in a pool of blood.

Mina gasped, time slowing down as she looked up, her hands and knees quivering. Her eyes widened as her head turned to Takeba's body. She hadn't moved. Her body was completely limp, no signs of breathing either. Like she was...

_Dead_.

Mina felt her whole body go numb, her vision blurred and her heart pounded in her ears and chest. Mina found herself in that car again. The windows coated in blood, her parents and brother dead right next to her. She was the only one who survived that crash. Was she going to be the only one who survived this, too?

Mina looked back down to the gun. Her eyes narrowed and her eyebrows furrowed, her hands forming into fists. No. No, she wasn't. Not this time.

She bent down and her hand picked up the bloody gun. A familiar, calming voice rang in her head.

_"Go on…"_

The gun pressed against her temple. She didn't know what she was doing. It was as if her body were on autopilot. But, everything felt right somehow. With wide eyes and heavy breaths, Mina felt a deranged grin spreading across her face.

"Per-" Mina's finger started to squeeze the trigger- "...so-" the trigger was close to firing-"...na..."

She pulled the trigger.

Glass shattered from the other side of her head, and a geyser of blue light shot upwards behind her with glass flying around in a beautiful pattern. A psychotic smile spread across Mina's face as someone materialized from the light.

**_"I am thou... Thou art I..._**

**_The sea of hearts I cometh..._**

**_I am the Master of Strings… ORPHEUS!"_**

Mina felt power pumping through her veins as her persona appeared in front of her. A deranged smirk plastered both of their faces as the shadow backed away from Yukari and turned to Mina. Without another moment's hesitation, the shadow lunged for Mina. Orpheus immediately charged at it. He took his harp from his back and used it as a weapon, smashing against the shadow's swords.

Mina felt a gust of wind hit her as the shadow shoved itself away from Orpheus. It pulled out another sword, its arms dancing as it charged for Orpheus again. Orpheus let out an animalistic screech and flew backwards, fire engulfing the shadow. The shadow let out a cry of pain as the fire spread all over its body and the roof.

The fire hadn't hurt Yukari, however. It acted as a shield for her.

As the cinched shadow crawled away, Orpheus sent fire wherever it went. The shadow screeched every time it was hit. But, every time an explosion hit, Mina felt more drained and weak.

She was breathing heavily as she forced Orpheus to stop. She suddenly felt a sharp shooting pain seep through her head. Orpheus responded with a demonic screech and his body parts started to spin and twirl like a robot that was malfunctioning. Mina gasped as she held her head, her nails digging into her scalp. The pain quickly evolved into an unbearable, agonizing curse.

Not being able to bear it any longer, Mina released her head. She bent backwards and her glowing eyes looked up to the sky as she let out the most deafening, most satanic scream. Orpheus couldn't handle it and his head had sunk into his malfunctioning body, black arms growing out of the empty space.

Hands had taken hold of Orpheus's body and _ripped him apart_.

As soon as he was torn to shreds, a new persona appeared with a monstrous screech. Coffins appeared around this persona and he took out his long, sharp sword. Mina let out a sinister chuckle as she watched the shadow charge at the two of them.

The shadow's arms stretched out farther than needed trying to grab the new sinister persona, only to have the persona dodge every single arm. He roared as he sliced through each arm with his sword.

The shadow was sliced into many parts, and its mask evaporated into black wisps once the blade cut it in half. The mysterious persona held one of its many arms in its hands before crushing it like it was a simple bug, the black blood spilling next to Mina.

The persona flew up over a very drained and very weary Mina, and turned back into Orpheus. Mina was breathing heavily and her eyes began to droop as the adrenaline began to leave her body. She looked up and saw Takeba standing up from where she once laid.

Mina smiled weakly as the world faded to black.


	5. Welcome Aboard

_Feeling lightheaded, Mina reluctantly opened her blurry eyes. Her vision was engulfed with blue and she felt herself going up. "**Ah... the Velvet Room..."**_

_Mina's vision sharpened and she was met with Igor._

_Igor grinned, "It's so nice to see you again. You became unconscious after awakening to your 'power,'"_

_Mina hummed, remembering the events that occurred on the roof._

_"I see that it was Orpheus that heeded your calling. That power is called a persona. A manifestation of your psyche," Igor hummed, "A persona is a facet of your personality that surfaces as you react to external stimuli..._

_"Think of it as a mask that protects you as you brave many hardships. When you use your persona, you must channel your inner strength..." Igor elaborated, "The ability evolves as you develop your social links—your emotional ties with others._

_"The stronger your social links, the more powerful your persona ability. Please remember that," Igor hummed, "Ah, time still marches on in your world. The next time you come here, it will be on your own accord. Until then, farewell..."_

_Mina felt her eyes blur and slowly faded from consciousness._

**_**

Mina awoke with a gasp, jolting a bit upwards, only to sink back to where she laid. She looked up, she saw a white ceiling. She felt drained, and very numb. She heard a heart monitor beep steadily as Mina sucked in a breath. She was in the hospital.

"Oh, you're up!" A familiar voice chirped. Mina looked over and saw Yukari standing up from her chair next to the hospital bed. "Thank goodness you finally came to!"

Yukari made a frustrated face and crossed her arms, "How much sleep did you need?! It's been a whole week!"

Mina furrowed her eyebrows. "A whole week...?"

Yukari nodded, her face softening. "The doctor couldn't find anything wrong with you. He just said you were exhausted,"

Mina sighed, bringing her IV-hooked hand up to rub her eye. Her hand felt heavy and sore. Mina set her hand down for a moment before propping herself up into a sitting position, ignoring Yukari's protests. Yukari suddenly rubbed her arm, looking down at the floor, "Um...I wanted to apologize. I wasn't much help back there..." She smiled, bringing her twinkling eyes to Mina, "But your power...! It's _amazing_! You saved me,"

Mina felt her cheeks heat up and she quickly averted her eyes, her hands awkwardly gripping the bed sheets. "It was nothing..."

Yukari giggled, "If you say so," the brunette sat back down in her chair, still staring at a bedridden Mina. "That thing you fought was a shadow. It's what we're fighting. That power you used? We call it a persona,"

Mina brought her eyes to Yukari, her blush no longer in existence. She furrowed her eyebrows together, Igor's words echoing in her mind.

_"That power is called a persona. A manifestation of your psyche..."_

Mina hummed, her brain slowly processing. Yukari huffed, bringing the other's attention back to her. "We'll explain everything later. I'm sorry we didn't tell you before..." The girl averted her eyes, her hands balling into fists in her lap. "I, uh... I wanted to tell you that... I'm kinda like you,"

Mina made a small grunt of confusion. Yukari sighed, "My dad died in an accident when I was little...and my mom and I aren't exactly on good terms..."

Oh.

_Oh_.

Mina gripped the sheets, her face darkening, and her eyes glaring daggers at Yukari. Yukari looked up, not paying any mind to Mina's death glare. "You're all alone, too, right?" She sighed, "To be honest, I already know about your past. But it didn't seem fair, so I thought I'd share mine..."

Mina scoffed, her face showing disbelief. "...you had no right,"

Yukari averted her eyes, "I know. That's why I'm telling you this..." She took in a large breath, "It was back in '99. There was a huge explosion in the area. My dad supposedly died in the blast, but no one really knows what happened..."

Mina's gaze softened and she was met with empathy. She released the bed sheets and relaxed a bit. Yukari sighed. "He was working in a lab run by the Kirijo Group. So, I'm hoping that if I stick around long enough, I'll learn something..." She looked up to Mina with a small, sad smile. "That's why I'm going to Gekkoukan High, why I was there when this happened to you,"

The girl slouched and let out a disappointed sigh, "Of course, I panicked and I wasn't much help. This was my first time fighting them too. I'm sorry, you wouldn't have had to go through this is I wasn't such a coward..."

After a moment, Mina sighed. "It probably would have happened anyway..." Yukari hummed, rubbing her arm sheepishly, "Maybe..." The girl let out a breathless laugh, "Here I am telling you all of this the moment you wake up...

"While I was waiting, I thought to myself, '_I've been hiding so many things from her. The moment she wakes up, I'll tell her the truth._..'" Yukari smiled and placed her hand over Mina's. "I've been wanting to share that story for a long time. Thanks for listening...!"

Mina offered a small grin, just as a yawn took place. She covered her mouth until the yawn passed. Her eyelids felt heavy and her body was begging for her to lay down and go to sleep. She quickly mumbled an apology before she placed her hand in her lap. Yukari giggled, taking her hand off Mina's and setting it in her lap.

"I'll let you rest. I should get going anyway," Yukari stood from her chair and placed her hands behind her back, "I'll let the others know you woke up." As she walked closer to the door, Yukari looked back, "Oh, and you don't have to be formal around me or anything. Us second-year girls gotta stick up for each other after all! See ya!"

And with that, Yukari left the hospital room. Mina watched with a small, tired grin. She sighed, her body finally starting to shut down again. Mina slowly lied back down and rolled onto her side, her body relaxing as she fell into a deep sleep.

**_**

It was a peaceful Monday morning, Mina had finally gotten the chance to go back to school. Though, she was still tired, despite the fact that she slept in a hospital bed for a whole week. She walked to school with no interruptions or complications. But, she could still feel the stares of her classmates as she walked closer to the gates. No one spoke directly to her-

"Yo! Long time no see,"

Mina sighed. No one spoke to her, _except_ for Junpei Iori. She turned and saw Iori jogging towards her. He stopped and walked a steady pace with Mina.

"What's up? Haven't seen ya for a week! Didja have a upset stomach or something?" Mina raised her eyebrows.

_"An upset stomach? Is he joking?"_

"Oh! Anyways, dude, I have to tell you something-" Iori said, only to be interrupted.

"Sheesh, someone's full of energy. I can hear you from a the way over there!" Yukari said, shaking her head. Iori perked up, "Oh, hey it's Yuka-tan!"

"Heh, you guys live in the same dorm, but came today separately? Oh, is it because you'll get too many rumors again?" Iori guessed, fixing his hat. Mina rolled her eyes, regretting coming to school this early.

Yukari scoffed, "What? It was just because I arrived a little late," Yukari looked to Mina and then back to Iori. "Anyways, I need to talk to her, so, bye-bye Junpei!"

"_Whaaaaaat_?" Iori whined. He sighed, "Eh, whatever, it's prolly lady stuff. Later!"

Iori saluted before he jogged away from the two and towards the school. Yukari sighed, stopping in her tracks. Mina stopped too, knowing Yukari needed her for something. The brunette looked up to the other and gave a concerned smile, "How are you feeling today..." a blush suddenly spread across Yukari's face, "...Mina?"

Mina offered a small grin, shrugging. "All right," Yukari relaxed, smiling.

"That's good! Oh and um... Sorry to spring this onto you first thing in the morning, but Ikutsuki-san wants to speak with you today. Come to the 4th floor in the dorms after school today, okay?" Yukari said, a sympathetic look in her eyes. Mina shrugged and nodded. "Okay,"

Yukari smiled, "Okay! Don't forget!"

The first bell rung and the two second-years walked to the building together in a comfortable silence.

**_**

"All right, that's enough about mammoths, I really don't see the big deal. They're just huge elephants!" Mr. Ono complained. Mina sighed, her foot tapping rapidly and her hands twirling her pen around her fingers.

"Ah well, that wraps up for the Stone Age," Mr. Ono sighed, "I'm getting tired of teaching about stones..."

_"You're telling me..."_ Mina mentally sighed. She had learned all about the Stone Age in elementary school and the lesson stuck with her ever since. She knows mostly everything about the Stone Age.

"Honestly, I'd rather talk about the Sengoku era! Japanese history's not that excited until then," Mr. Ono declared. The older man grumbled. "But, I'm paid to do this so I guess I gotta..." He sighed, "It's tough being an adult..."

Mina raised her eyebrows, Mr. Ono looking through a book he held in the crook of his arm. "All right, next is...the Jomon period? When do the samurai get their day in the sun?!" Mr. Ono shook his head and closed the book, "I'll just ask a question at random and call it a day... Hey, Junpei!"

Mina perked up and looked across the room to Iori, who was busy balancing a pencil on his lips. He made a noise of surprise and the pencil fell on the desk with a loud, high-pitched thud. Mr. Ono pointed at the junior dramatically, "What was the style of houses in the Jomon period called?"

Mina's foot tapped at an inhuman-like speed at the easy question. She remembered the Jomon period from middle school. It was her "big project." Though, she didn't get that big of a grade. She completely forgot about it so it was messily pieced together last minute. But, Mina knew about it either way so she eagerly looked to Iori with hope in her grey eye. She knew Iori wasn't paying attention and would need help, and Mina would be glad to offer hers. She always liked answering the easy questions, for she knew the answer and could speak it with confidence.

Iori's leg bounced as he loudly and hastily whispered, "How am I supposed to remember something from way back then...?!" He caught Mina's gaze and gave a panicked look. "What the hell is he talkin' about...?!"

Mina smirked a bit to herself as she whispered, "Mud huts...!"

Junpei repeated the girl's answer with nervousness in his voice. Mr. Ono nodded, a proud grin on his face. "That's correct. Mud huts were built by digging a hole in the ground and supporting the roof," the man sighed, his grin disappearing completely. "Ugh... It's no use. I can't get interested. I want to get into the age of katanas! Everything else is so dull..."

Iori squawked, "What? I answered right and I don't get any credit?" He sighed, "Whatever... Thanks, Mina,"

Iori smiled and winked at Mina, earning an eyeroll in return. It wasn't much, the question was easy enough to memorize and answer. Mina always had a habit of studying the simple questions. She quite liked studying, actually. She doesn't answer questions often, however.

Ignoring the whispers of her classmates, Mina returned her attention to Mr. Ono as he made a speech about how amazing the Sengoku era is.

**_**

Having remembered the meeting at the dorm, Mina walked alone today. She left earlier, so Iori didn't have the chance to ask to walk with her. Mina arrived at the dorms not too long after escaping school and she quickly turned off her music player, her headphones now dangling over her small shoulders. As she closed the door behind her, Mina was quick to notice that the lounge was empty. She recalled Yukari telling her to go to the fourth floor.

After signing in, the petite girl walked up to the fourth floor, cringing every time a creak echoed through the silent dorm. Every footstep felt like a earthquake to Mina, for the silence was too _unbearable_. She considered turning on her music, but she decided against it since the floor wasn't that far away now. Sighing in relief, Mina had arrived to the fourth floor; she opened the door to one of the rooms automatically and found Yukari, Kirijo, Ikutsuki, and an unfamiliar male student sitting on some of the many leather chairs.

"Ah, there you are," Ikutsuki hummed immediately after Mina opened the door. She closed the door behind her and awkwardly stood near it.

"I'm glad that you are okay. I wasn't sure what I'd do if anything had happened to you," Ikutsuki said, Mina giving him a skeptical glare. "The reason why I called you here, is because I needed to talk to you. Please, have a seat,"

Mina calmly walked over to Yukari, who unsubtly gestured to the empty spot next to her. The brunette offered a warm smile, Mina only giving her a short nod in greeting. The bluenette sat down and had her hands in her lap. Ikutsuki smiled, "Ah, before we begin," the man gestured to the male that sat next to Kirijo. "This is Akihiko Sanada. He is another resident in the dorms,"

Mina looked over to Sanada and scanned him. He looked about a year older than Mina, he had fair skin, silver-ish hair, and brown eyes. He wore a white bandage just above his left eyebrow, and wore a red sweater over his uniform. The boy offered a welcoming smile to Mina.

Mina only averted her gaze. Ikutsuki hummed, "All right, let me start off by asking you this..." Mina looked up and saw Ikutsuki giving her a serious look. "Would you believe me if I told you that a day consists of _more_ than just twenty-four hours?"

Mina raised an eyebrow, "...excuse me?"

Kirijo chuckled, making Mina look over to her. "I'm not surprised by your reaction. However, you've already experienced this truth firsthand," Kirijo leaned in a bit, her crimson eyes serious, "Do you remember the first night you came here? You had to have noticed the signs; the streetlights were out, nothing was working, coffins were everywhere..."

Mina suppressed a shiver, memories haunting her. She can't count how many coffins she had to pass just to arrive in front of the dorms. And all of those pools of blood she walked over...

"Didn't it feel like you were in a different time?" Kirijo finally asked. "That's the _Dark Hour_—a time that's hidden between one day and the next,"

"It occurs each night, as the clock strikes twelve," Ikutsuki said, calmly. "It'll happen again tonight, and every night to come,"

"Normal people don't realize it because they're all sleeping inside their coffins," Sanada said, his deep voice sending small chills up Mina's spine. "But, that's not what makes the Dark Hour so interesting. You saw those creatures," the boy's face formed into a devilish look and his lips quirked up into a smirk. "We call 'em Shadows. They only appear during the Dark Hour and attack anyone not in a coffin. It's our job to defeat them,"

Sanada suddenly had an excited smile on his face, "Sounds exciting, huh?"

Mina's eyebrows raised and a bemused grin formed. _"Exciting?"_

Suddenly, Kirijo scoffed and had a look of disbelief on her face. "Akihiko! Why are you always like that? You just got hurt the other day!"

Ikutsuki waved his hand dismissively, "Now, now. He does his work well," Ikutsuki turned to Mina, "Long story short, we're the Specialized Extracurricular Execution Squad—_SEES_ for short,"

Mina blinked, her mind barely processing the information given to her. Ikutsuki didn't notice, and continued to talk, "On paper, we're classified as a school club, but, in reality, this group is dedicated to defeating the shadows. Mitsuru is the leader, I am the club advisor." Ikutsuki finished.

"A shadow feeds on the mind of its prey; the victim becomes a living corpse," Kirijo said, her eyes narrowed and serious. "They're responsible for most of the incidents on the news, if not all of them. And, unfortunately, the police aren't able to do anything during the Dark Hour,"

Mina sighed shortly, of course the police would be completely useless. When is there a time they aren't?

"Although rare, there are those who can function during the Dark Hour," Ikutsuki stated, "Some may even awaken to a power that enables them to fight the shadows. That's persona, the power you used the other night. Which means, it's all up to you guys,"

Mina swallowed hard, her foot beginning to tap anxiously. She had a bad feeling. But, she nodded anyway, "I see,"

Ikutsuki grinned, "I'm glad you're quick to understand,"

Mina gave the man a skeptical glare. Something about Ikutsuki rubbed Mina the wrong way. She didn't completely understand what it was, but she didn't trust him. Mina glanced over to Kirijo, who was setting down a case on the table. She opened it, the click echoing through the room.

A silver gun gleamed uncannily from inside, Mina recognizing it from that night. Kirijo turned to look at the girl, her face serious.

"What he's trying to say is, we want you to join us," Kirijo gestured to the gun inside the case, "We've prepared an Evoker for you, we'd like you to lend us your strength,"

Mina raised her eyebrows, her face expressing shock and confusion. She stared at the gun- or _Evoker_, as Kirijo called it. She already fought a shadow, and already experienced the feeling of her persona. She felt a small smirk make its way to her face as she remembered how powerful she felt that night, how in control she felt.

Mina drew in a small breath, looking to an antsy Kirijo, "All right. I'll join you,"

A sigh of relief came from Yukari. "Thank god! I was afraid you'd say no..." she gave Mina a welcoming smile, "Welcome aboard!"

"Thank you so much, I'm really glad," Ikutsuki said, his voice barely showing any signs of true happiness. He made a face of realization, "Oh, I almost forgot, about your room assignment..." he hummed, "Why don't you just stay here, in your current room? I don't know what the hold up is, but I guess it worked out in the end,"

Ikutsuki chuckled, Mina shooting him another skeptical look. Yukari suddenly made a noise of confusion, "Holdup? But, wasn't that-" she sighed, "Oh, nevermind..."

Mina shrugged to herself. She has joined SEES to fight the shadows, she processes. A voice suddenly rang in her head, making her perk up in alarm. She heard the sound of chains snapping as the voice spoke.

**_"I am thou...thou art I..._**

**_Thou hast established a new bond..._**

**_Thou shalt be blessed when creating_**

**_Personas of the Fool Arcana..."_**

Mina felt drained, yet powerful at the same time. She felt a warmth surround her heart as the voice died down. She seemed to have established a bond within the SEES, she realizes. She suddenly recalled Igor saying something like...

_"The ability evolves as you develop your social links—your emotional ties with others..."_

Mina hummed to herself, shaking her head lightly to rid of the ringing in her ears._ "So, Social Links are the bonds I form with those I meet..."_

Mina felt her shoulders slump, her eyes becoming droopy. She was still tired from her hospital stay. As if reading her thoughts, Ikutsuki decided to call it a day, excusing everyone to their dorm rooms. Mentally thanking the man, Mina was one of the first to leave to her dorm.

She released a yawn as she made her way to her room. She opened the door, immediately turning on the light and closing the door behind her. Mina took off her headphones from her neck and set them down on the desk next to her phone. She sighed, taking off her uniform and leaving it on the ground for tommorow out of exhaustion. She quickly slipped out of her shoes and set them by her desk.

Mina quickly slipped on a baggy white t-shirt and black shorts. She rubbed her groggy eyes, deciding to just go to sleep and skip brushing her teeth. She yawned, almost ready to pass out as she quickly turned off the lights. She trudged to her bed, climbing into her blankets immediately. She fell asleep instantly.

**_**

Mina's eyes fluttered open, green coating her vision as she quickly propped herself up into a sitting position. She was in the Dark Hour again. Mina suddenly looked to her left, seeing the boy in the prison uniform. Mina gave him a skeptical glare, while he gave her a welcoming smile.

"Hi, how are you?" He asked, Mina wondering whether or not to make a beeline for the door. She tried to move away, but her body refused to move. She grumbled a bit.

"Who are you?" She asked. A cliche question, really. The boy chuckled. "We've met before,"

"Soon, the end will come..." he gave Mina a smile that sent chills up her spine. "I remembered, so I just thought I should tell you,"

"... thanks," Mina replied, her voice completely monotone.

The boy chuckled, "I wasn't expecting you to thank me," he gave Mina another smile, "But, you're welcome. That is what I'm supposed to say, right?"

Mina let out a small chuckle of her own, "Yes, it is,"

The boy seemed pleased. He suddenly had a look of innocence on his face, "I don't know what this 'end' is about, either," the boy grinned, "Oh, it seems you've awakened to your power...an unusual power that is. A power that takes on many forms, yet, it is bound by none..."

Mina gave the little boy a quizzical look, a small pit forming in her stomach. Bound by none?

"It may prove to be your salvation, depending on where you end up," the boy in the prison uniform hummed, "Do you remember the first time we met?"

Mina nodded, recalling her first night in the dorm. She remembered the contract she signed.

The boy gave a creepy smile, "I expect you to honor your commitment. I'll be watching you, even if you forget about me..."

Chills danced up Mina's spine, suddenly growing cold. She shuddered, the little boy still smiling at her. "Okay, then. See you later..."

Suddenly, in the blink of an eye, he was gone. Mina looked around her, even looking under her bed. She was happy when she found nothing. She leaned back onto her pillows.

"Is this my karma for not brushing my teeth...?"


End file.
